Traditionally in the mass production of cookies, wirecutting unit operations may be used to cut dough pieces to the proper weight and deposit them on an oven band prior to baking unit operations. Achieving uniform dough weights is needed to assure uniform baking, so that dough pieces which are too thin are not overbaked, and dough pieces which are too thick are not underbaked. Conventional wire cutting operations employ a wire or blade which cuts across a plurality of extruded dough ropes to obtain dough pieces which are deposited on a moving belt. Depositing the dough pieces so that they form a regular pattern of rows across the belt and along the belt is also needed to assure uniform baking because dough pieces which are close together bake differently from those that are far apart.
However, in recent years consumers have requested more indulgent type products which contain large size particulates or inclusions such as raisins, nuts, and confectionary chips or chunks or flavor chips, such as chocolate chips or chunks. Home-baked chocolate chip cookies are generally baked from a dough having the chocolate chips dispersed throughout the dough. The dough is subdivided into spoon size pieces and dropped onto a baking sheet. A typical recipe provided on the packaging of store-bought chocolate chips calls for about one cup of chocolate chips and about 2.5 cups of other chocolate chip cookie ingredients. This rather large proportion of chocolate chips, the generally large size of the chocolate chips (bottom diameter of about 0.4 in.) and the dough piece size assure the attainment of cookies having a plurality of chocolate chips which have a portion which is visually apparent.
Wire-cutting machines are generally used for the mass production of chocolate chip cookies from a dough, which like a dough prepared at home, contains the chocolate chips dispersed throughout prior to dough piece formation. On a wire-cutting machine, an extrudate rope is cut into disc-shaped dough pieces having visually apparent chocolate chips, which may be baked to provide cookies having visually apparent chocolate chips.
Conventional wire-cutting machines, however, cannot be used to consistently mass produce cookie dough pieces with substantially uniform dough weights having a desirable large amount of large particulates such as chocolate chips. As the size and amount of particulates or inclusions are increased, the resistance to cutting increases and there is less dough through which the resistant pieces may move upon contact with the wire or blade. As a result, the large particulates tend to be dragged across the cookie dough surface or are partially cut or removed or displaced from the dough piece. The dragging and loss of whole or portions of the particulates creates undesirable craters or pock marks in the dough pieces and in the final baked product. In addition, the increased resistance to cutting, and the displacement or loss of particulates causes substantial variation in dough piece weight, and causes the dough pieces to fall in a more irregular pattern. For example, dough piece variation may be 20% by weight or more, and dough pieces may be caused to fall on each other or fall close enough to each other so that when they are baked and spread in the oven, the pieces touch each other, producing a “double” or a “triple” cookie. Also, particulates or portions thereof may be displaced or dislocated from a dough piece, along with adherent dough so that it becomes part of remains with the dough rope and the subsequently cut dough piece. Uniform baking and packaging suffer as a consequence of the non-uniform dough weights and non-uniform dough piece array.
Furthermore, typical wire cutting operations involve using a wire or blade which would generate buildup of material or breakage of the blade or wire when attempting to produce doughs with large amounts of large particulates, thereby requiring frequent shutdowns to clean or replace the blades. These problems are further exacerbated when employing sticky or low fat doughs.
While commercially available confectionary or flavor chips or chunks, such as chocolate chips or chunks may have particle sizes of about 500 to about 10,000 counts or chips per pound (where the higher the count per pound, the smaller is the size of the chip), commercial wire cutting operations are generally limited to flavor chips having a particle size of about 3,500 to about 10,000 counts per pound, for example from about 4,000 to about 5,000 counts per pound.
Ultrasonic cutting has been employed to provide smooth cutting of foods such as baked goods or doughs. Also, ultrasonic molding has been employed for precise molding and improved mold release in the production of foods such as baked goods or doughs.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,431,849 discloses production of confectionary products from strips or ropes which may include puffed cereal and candied fruit bits, dry fruits, nuts, or the like. The products are made using an ultrasonic mold to achieve a precise texture, finish or detail.
U.S. Patent publication no. 2005/0196505 discloses ultrasonically cutting a coextruded dough rope where a specific pattern or ornamental design is produced. The conveyor employed for transporting the cookie dough units, as described in referenced U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,561,235 and 6,715,518, raises to support the bottom of the dough rope as the dough rope is cut.
Cutting with an ultrasonic blade, or molding, forming, or imprinting with an ultrasonic forming tool of foods, such as dough or baked goods is disclosed in U.S. Patent Publication Nos. 2003/0035876, 2005/0496505, 2006/0263504, and 2007/0172559, and U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,817,141, 5,620,713, 6,530,768, 6,561,235, 6,627,241, 6,715,518, 7,067,167, and 7,264,836. However, the purpose of the ultrasonic cutting is to provide clean smooth cuts, so as not to disturb coextruded patterns or areas adjacent to the cut. Providing clean, smooth cuts detracts from the attainment of a home-baked cookie appearance where surface cracks and varying topography are desirably present. Also, the purpose of the ultrasonic forming is to mold or imprint foods into a specific shape while avoiding sticking so as to improve mold release. However, use of a mold provides regular, cookie cutter shapes, and smooth surfaces rather than a home baked appearance of randomly irregular shapes and random topography.
Cutting through dough ropes having large inclusions such as chocolate chips, nuts and dried fruits, so as to sever the dough rope and provide dough pieces which are bakeable to a home-baked, random irregular appearance with surface cracks and highly visible particulates is not disclosed and would be contrary to achieving a specific coextruded pattern, or molded or imprinted designs.
In addition, in the processes of the references, the ultrasonic cutting is performed with the food product being supported on its bottom side, such as ultrasonically cutting of the food when it is on a conveyor. None of the references relate to ultrasonically cutting substantially vertically oriented dough ropes and permitting the dough pieces to fall onto a moving conveyor in an array of rows for baking without substantial deformation of the dough pieces, while achieving substantially reduced dough weight variation.
The present invention provides methods and apparatus for the continuous, mass production of cookies having a high content of large inclusions or particulates, such as chocolate chips, nuts, and fruit pieces, using ultrasonic wirecutting to achieve reduced dough weight variation and a home baked appearance. The methods of the present invention avoid or eliminate buildup on the cutting blades, distortion of the dough pieces, and excessive deformation of the dough piece surfaces caused by dragging of particulates, as well as breaking of the wire or blade. Additionally, substantial improved control of the dough weights, substantial reduction in waste such as caused by “doubles” and “triples,” and a more uniformly baked, packageable final product are achieved with the methods of the present invention.